I had played Yamahas myself, but not P. Mauriat, so I asked some of my friends about it.
Manny
That actually sounds exactly like me a couple of years ago. Yamaha’s are great horns. I had one until it got stolen. P. Mauriats are great horns. But the question I would have is that what is your price range, Mauriats are very expensive. Also would you have a repair tech in your area because they are completely handmade. That said, since you are really just getting your mojo workin again The Yamaha would be a better choice in my opinion.
Yours in Music
BE BLESSED
-Calvin
Hi Neal,
I have played one P.Mauriat sax and have read lots about it. They seem to
represent the new quality coming from Taiwan. Relatively cheap but good
quality, great tone and singing quality. I, personally, found it to bright
and lacking the real pro character a Selmer or good vintage horns can get
you.
Narrowing down to Yamaha or P.Mauriat seems unneccesary limited anyway. In
that list I should definitely include Yanagisawa!
regards,
Ptr
I have not had the chance but my friend in chitown who works at sam ash says they’re very nice. they have great designs.
-Rick
Hi neal, I play a yam yts 875ex tenor I got on ebay in mint condition for $2200.00. I want to tell you how happy I am with this horn. It plays much better than the yts 62 and yts 62ll series well worth the extra money. I also owned a yas 62 ll series great horn also.; I also have been courios and it is between the p mauriat alto and the 82z ul alto or 875ex.I can tell you that one of the best players in st petersburg/tampa fl uses a tenor by them. In the past I have seen him use a martin,an la sax and I noticed he started using a p mauriat a couple years ago.He can be heard on his myspace michaelmcaurther.com. good luck , mike
Neal, Yamaha is definitely the way to go. The pitch is right, it is predictable and it fits in the hand really well. I have been teaching for 16 years and have that students have the best luck withYamaha’s. I play a Custom 857 Alto and a 62 Tenor. I cannot say enough about the horns!!!
-Kreston
Well of course I love a yamaha and I prefer over anything else.
-Stefan
Yeah, they are nice looking instruments almost as good a Yamaha’s in the right hands.
-Jim
I have never played a P. Mauriat saxophone. However, you might want to tell Don that he can get a really decent alto at saxophone.com for less than a grand.
-Delroy
-David
Long time back, i had a “Zephyr ” bari….beautiful. It was written off in an accident. My horns are always insured. However…it was approaching Christmas….i had a load of section playing on, so was in a bad spot. First…ins. co. hired me a replacement. It arrived damaged…i would not have used it anyhow. Couple days later i get a call. A certain retail set up, said….they dealt with company claims….exclusive. If i were to accept a P. Mauriat bari, straight from factory….it could be done post haste. Mauriat had literally just started putting out horns….after the hype period…..selmers of the future….etc. I needed a bari…..i agreed. USP or whoever turned up. I am a big guy….i had trouble shifting the package. It is the heaviest bari i have ever known. Stupid. The case weighed about the same….i mean ridiculous. Opened case….what a horrible looking thing. I have no time for this fake vintage finish. Advertised authentic…….who buys these things? Answer….i did. It is the worst move i have made in a 30yr. career. And without a doubt the most awful horn i have ever seen or played. I sold it the next day…..for a huge loss. I could no longer deal with it…..i just wanted that bari as far away from myself as possible. Found out a few years later, the ins. co. actually repaired the King. (told me it was impossible)….and sold it through the aformentioned retail outlet. I never did get another bari…..stuck to tenor. I will do though….it WONT be a mauriat!!!
This dudes is not sour grapes. The mauriat bari must cost…….dunno…what…$4500 new. I feel it is important to have an opinion….so long as you can back it up. Two points. a…..as you said Mr. Mauriat….is not a horn player. b….endorsements. ” Do the Basie boys return to their mk. VI’s at home?”….what do you think? Certain “players” will endorse anything. Recently done a load of mpc. research. Seen at least one pro…..” i use? ….exclusivley”…oh….and also….?..exclusive. Go to mpc site#7……….guess who…….blah blah….exclusive. When you get to see them play…..it is on the sba. with the same link they have used for 40 yrs. Astute businessmen….or money obsessed fools, who really dont care what they promote? So…mauriat..London, New York, Paris…….strangely, no mention ofTaiwan…..wonder why…..see you.
Hey Adrian,
I thin the main thing is to test out horns yourself and see how you like them. Thanks for telling us your experience with the bari.
Taiwan- it seems like Mauriat and Cannonball both make their horns there?
I have an alto made there, a Jupiter, it’s just a student model horn, but it plays decently, not amazing, but decent.
There are a lot of saxophones made in Taiwan and I think the quality has gone up over the years. But you always want to be careful and use due diligence when buying a sax.
-Neal
I used to have a Mauriat alto the 67R model. They are well worth the money. Nice warm tone and quality was great. Sorry I got rid of now. I was kind of new to sax playing and was always wondering about how different models sounded, or rather I sounded when playing. This led me to sell it and get into vintage horns. I recommend them with no hesitation!
Thanks for sharing Mel.